We recognize that our operations have an impact on the environment. Understanding and reducing our environmental impact are key priorities for us, especially in the areas of building energy consumption, waste generation and business travel. 

Our efforts are informed by EDC’s Climate Change Policy, which outlines our commitment to report on and improve our operational footprint. Our approach ranges from major operational changes such as moving EDC’s headquarters in Ottawa to a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-approved building to developing employee awareness campaigns such as waste-reduction initiatives.

As part of our commitment to reach net zero emissions across our business by 2050, we have set a target to achieve net zero in our operational emissions. Since 2019, we’ve reduced our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and are committed to continuing our reduction initiatives as we work to achieve our net zero target. We believe it is critical to lead by example as we work to enable our customers to progress on their own paths to net zero.

EDC’s operational GHG emissions for 2021 were 3,793 tCO₂e, down from 7,617 tCO₂e in 2020. The emissions intensity reduced from 4.21 to 1.96 tCO₂e per employee.

View the operational footprint graph in more detail in our annual report.

How we report

We report data annually, including electricity, natural gas and paper usage, as well as water consumption and business travel. Our GHG emissions measurement and reporting aligns to the standards set out for corporate accounting and reporting by the Greenhouse Gas Protocol, which is the most widely used GHG accounting framework by private and public sector organizations worldwide.